The Cosmic Santa Claus In The Sky

“Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, ‘King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.’” - Daniel 3:16-18

Many Christians know this story very well. Depicted in the book of Daniel, his three friends, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, refused to worship a gigantic statue that the king of Babylon had set up. For that, they were thrown into the fiery furnace, just to be rescued later by a Godly figure, which, for Christians, is the figure of Jesus Christ. The problem with this story for many Christians is that they miss the point. The teaching here is not about the rescue. The learning is about who God is and your relationship with Him.

By the time of the Babylonian invasion, Israel had lost their identity. They were captive in a distant land, inside a very different culture. They had their names changed to erase their past and restart a new life under the most successful empire on Earth at that time. There was a time when King Nebuchadnezzar decreed that everyone must worship his image. This was a sign of alliance and a payoff for what the king was offering them: peace, food, culture, work, etc. All deities in the ancient world expected this kind of relationship, where you give me something, I give you something. Sacrifices to false gods are like this. You do something for the gods, and in return, they attend to your wish. It’s some sort of commercial transaction, paid in something that costs you, and in return, hopefully, you get a better return: better crops, health, peace, comfort, and the like.

Does it look similar? I can’t escape using this very same story and relating it to the current Christians and our current culture. The idea of “experiencing God”, or “feeling God”, as some name it, is that they’re expecting something in return. They don’t worship God because of what God is, but because of the returns they may get. Their trance, a new job, a new car, money, a cure for some disease, and so on. I believe everyone fell into this mistake during our initial conversion because we were probably all facing a big problem and looked to God as our last hope. And then some grew and realized that God is not a cosmic Santa Claus in the sky who rewards the good and punishes the bad, but that God deserves all the glory because of who He is: Our God and our LORD. I realize I can’t live without God, and I want this relationship with my creator and savior. I want to pray, I want to serve, and I want Him in my life. Not because I’ll get something, but because without Him, there is nothing left. God is not a “good-to-have” accessory in my life, but the fundamental foundation of it, and sometimes I face myself expecting something. I guess this is human nature, and we need to fight against it.

I can relate to most Christians because I fell for the same thing. I see many Christians chasing the shiny thing, with empty promises from false pastors or false prophets who claim God will give them something. They are misled by this vague concept of God, like Santa Claus, who will do to you according to your behavior. Good boy? Here is a new job! Bad boy? Oh, I won’t give you a new car, and I will blame your lack of faith as well.

The lesson Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego taught us was to stay firm in their commitment to follow God because of who God is, not because they expected to be delivered from death. Notice how they said to the king: “The God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” What an example to us! Love doesn’t expect anything. If it does, it is an investment, not love. If you do something for someone expecting something back, even a thank you, you didn’t give anything. You lent. God gave you everything and does not expect your money or good behavior in return. It is time to grow in faith. Like the apostle Paul said, “Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans?” It seems this is not a new problem for us; like infants, we are measuring our relationship with God by a commercial transaction and ignorantly expecting something in return. It's time to grow and realize that we love God because of who He is; if He gives us things, great; if not, great too. What we must want is a relationship.

This Christmas, I will ask God for a present. I will ask Him to give me wisdom, so I can understand who He is, and then I can start a real relationship with Him, not as Santa Claus, but as the only true God of everything.